Unseen
by Lizxcliff11
Summary: Wiping his eyes, Gray lifted his head to the mirror to take a look at himself, check for any grime on his face he needed to particularly scrub at, but when he looked in the mirror, he saw nothing. Upon closer inspection, he found his toothbrush floating in midair.


When Gray took this solo job, he didn't think he'd be gone so long, nor coming home with anything but the jewel. Instead, he had jewel, plus some blue colored drink. They'd convinced him it was a new beer, brewed by them, and they wanted him to be one of the first to get a pint, free of charge of course. Now, he's not one to turn down a free drink, but he was just so _damn tired_, he could care less. Because he didn't have time to sit around and drink, and he really just wanted to sleep in his own bed, he'd promised he'd try it once he was home, sending a letter regarding his opinion on it.

Now that he'd unlocked the door to his apartment, taken off his shoes, removed his jack- _wait, when did I lose that?_ Shrugging his bare shoulders, because _when did I lose my shirt too?_ he made his way to the kitchen, looking for something quick to eat before crashing in bed.

Settling on some ramen, he grabbed a pot, boiled some water, and softened the noodles. While waiting, he eyed the bottle sitting on the counter. Deciding, _why the fuck not?_ he reached for a glass, popped the cap and poured the contents. He swirled it around and took a whiff.

_Hm, a little fruity smelling. Not what you'd expect from a beer. _Shrugging again, he took a small sip. He contemplated the odd taste that followed swallowing. _I can't pinpoint it. _He takes another sip, then another, then downs the whole glass before realizing it. He wipes his lips and his eyes widen at the empty cup in his hand. _The hell? It wasn't that good. _

He was so confused. Soon, the water was boiling and the ramen was just about done. So he grabbed some butter and spices and added it to the pot, because _fuck a bowl, I do what I want_, picked out a fork from the drawer and made his way to the living room. He stopped short, however, remembering the drink, turned around, grabbed the bottle, neglecting the glass, and went to the sofa. He sat, ate, drank, and before he knew it, he was slumped on the couch, TV still blasting.

Gray woke up early due to the bright sun shining through his windows. _Ugh, I must've fallen asleep on the couch_. A hand to his head, he rose from the grave and yawned. He took in his surroundings and found the empty pot and bottle trashed on the floor. _Wow, I'm a loser. _

Looking at the mess made Gray cringe, his inner OCD kicking in to clean it, however, he wanted to shower since he forgot to do that last night. Ignoring the untidiness, he groggily made his way to his bathroom. Looking on the sink, he saw his toothbrush. His eyes were half-lidded, still not fully awake, when Gray grabbed the toothbrush and began brushing his teeth.

Wiping his eyes, Gray lifted his head to the mirror to take a look at himself, check for any grime on his face he needed to particularly scrub at, but when he looked in the mirror, he saw _nothing_. Upon closer inspection, he found his toothbrush floating in midair.

"What the fuck?!" He yelled, promptly dropping his toothbrush. He looked down at the rest of his body and noticed it was _gone_. "Huh?! What the fuck happened?!" He kept yelling.

_This didn't make sense. Was I hit with a spell? Did someone break in and do this to me? Am I dreaming? What the -_

His thoughts abruptly stopped when he remembered the drink he'd accepted from his job. He couldn't believe his luck. _Do Fairy Tail mages ever catch a goddamn break?! _He was freaking out. _What do I do? I can't really walk to the guild… unless I do naked… which I know is normal for me but - still! Maybe I should call someone? Lucy! Lucy would know what to do! _He thought of his intelligent teammate and dashed to his room, looking for his communication lacrima.

He held it in his invisible, _fuck_, hand, and searched for Lucy's name. He was about to hit the call button when he stopped. A small smirk formed on his face. _Natsu_.

He knew the boy wasn't smart enough to put two and two together. He could easily fuck with him, then call Lucy, tell her not to tell anyone, and Natsu would never figure it out. It was genius!

He quickly jumped in the shower and tried feeling for cleanliness and although it was still hard considering he was _invisible_, he made it work. Satisfied, he went to his bedroom to grab clothes, when he remembered that he couldn't wear clothes unless he wanted to be noticed.

_You're literally always naked, just do it. _Gray dried off, _hopefully_, and went to his apartment front door. Looking through the peephole, he searched for any of his neighbors that may notice his door open and close. Seeing no one around, he quietly opened his door, slipped out, and closed it behind him. Searching the area one last time, he swiftly walked down the streets of Magnolia. _First stop, the guild._

"Natsu," Lucy approached the pinket slowly. "Please, talk to me. What's wrong?"

Receiving only a sniffle in reply, Lucy sighed and sat on the edge of Natsu's bed. Back to Lucy, Natsu visibly shrunk into his mattress, comforter up to his chin, his hands clenching the blanket tightly.

"Natsu," Lucy tried again. Slowly reaching a hand out, Lucy caressed Natsu's hidden arm. "You know you can tell me anything." After a couple moments of silence, Natsu finally turned in his bed, facing his best friend.

"I can't get him out of my head, Luce," Natsu's raspy voice broke through. "Ever since Avatar, all I can think about is _him_."

"Why is that a bad thing, Natsu?" Lucy kept her voice quiet, not wanting to scare the man before her.

"Come on, Luce," Natsu let out a sarcastic laugh. "He's _straight_. He spent all that time with Juvia, and he's started blushing around her too. He's hit on you, Cana, even Erza! He's not into guys, especially not me." Natsu withdrew from Lucy's support, preparing to return to his pity party.

"Have you ever asked him?"

"No need." Sighing, Lucy rested her chin in the palm of her hand.

"It doesn't hurt to try though. You may be surprised." Natsu scoffed.

"Or even more heartbroken, but thanks, Luce."

_Not at the guild. Must be home. _Walking the rubble path through the woods, Gray made his way to Natsu's little cottage. As he grew closer, Gray could see smoke rising from the chimney, meaning the hothead was home. Smirking, Gray quietly walked to the side of the house where Natsu's bedroom was.

The window was cracked, yet not enough for Gray to slip through. He was about to curse when he heard voices coming from inside the house.

_"He's not into guys, especially not me."_ Raising an eyebrow, Gray got closer to the window, peering in to see Natsu laying under the covers in his bed, and Lucy sitting next to Natsu's body.

_"Have you ever asked him?"_ Gray was so confused. _What the hell are they talking about?_

_"No need."_ Looking closer, Gray's eyes widen. _Is Natsu… crying?_ Gray may be an asshole, but he wasn't heartless. _There's no way I can prank him now. _

_"Or even more heartbroken, but thanks, Luce."_ _Heartbroken?!_ Gray couldn't believe what he was hearing.

_"Natsu, he should be home soon, why don't we go to the guild, get you some food, and greet him like the great friends we are." _Lucy was trying to reason with Natsu, bribing him with food, that much was obvious. _Who are they talking abo-_

_"Not hungry."_ Gray nearly choked. _Not… hungry?!_ _What the fuck is this?!_ Gray had half a mind to say, _screw the spell,_ and bust through Natsu's door demanding what was wrong. But he knew that wouldn't end well.

They may be best friends, but that doesn't mean Natsu is going to share everything he is feeling. They show emotion with their fists, not words.

Turning on his heel, Gray made his way back to his apartment.

Gray had called Lucy once he was home, dying to ask what happened with Natsu, but instead, told her about his situation. She had laughed and said she'd be over soon.

Now here they were, sitting on Gray's couch, Lucy and floating clothes sat next to each other. Lucy was struggling to keep her giggles in.

"Okay, okay," Lucy took a deep breath. "Please continue." Gray wished she could see his glare.

"I drank the whole damn thing because it tasted good, and woke up this morning like _this_." Gray gestured to his body, not that Lucy could see.

After a chuckling a bit more, Lucy straightened her spine. "Alright. Why don't we go to the guild, and ask the others? Maybe someone knows what to do." Lucy was about to pat Gray's shoulder, but couldn't find it, causing her to break out into laughter again.

Gray let out a huff. "Fine. Let's go."

The guild reacted the same way as Lucy. After many laughs and comments and jokes, Levy finally stood up to the plate to help out.

"Alright," Levy's glasses were perched on the brim of her nose. "After testing the remnants of the drink, I think I can make an antidote."

Gray groaned. "Can't I just wait it out?"

"Well, I have no idea how long it's going to take." Levy gave the ice-make wizard a pout. "I'm sorry, Gray."

"He shouldn't have drunk some random shit then," Gajeel spoke up from behind the small girl.

"Fuck off," Gray retorted.

"Hey guys!" Everyone's favorite fire wizard burst through the guild's doors, voice loud and proud.

"Natsu!" Lucy's eyes widened, trying not to show too much surprise. "What're you doing here?"

"What do ya mean, Luce?" Natsu shrugged off her concern, keeping up his signature, wide grin. "What's everyone crowded over here for?"

For some reason, Gray's heart rate sped up knowing his friend was about to join their guildmates.

"Gray's invisible!" Romeo yelled from beside his father.

Natsu's smile faltered slightly, but he quickly covered it with a loud laugh. "Ha! How'd you manage that stupid popsicle?"

"Fuck you flame brain!" Gray was getting frustrated. Between not knowing what was wrong with Natsu earlier, being invisible, and having no clue when he'd look normal again, Gray was close to losing it.

"You wanna go?!" Natsu was getting riled up, ready to let go all these pent up emotions. And fighting could fix that.

"You know what, I do!" Gray couldn't help it. Like Natsu, he needed to release the tension in his _invisible_ body. Standing up, Gray's clothes floated out the door, Natsu following close behind, not even bothering to hold in his laughter.

The doors shut with a loud slam, and silence flooded the guild hall.

"Is someone going to stop them or…?" Romeo's voice broke through.

"Nah, let them get it out of their system," Lucy said, hiding her worry behind an exasperated smile.

By the time they reached their sparring spot in the woods, Gray had calmed down. The walk gave him time to reflect a bit on the day, and he felt an odd sense of guilt. His friend was incredibly upset only a couple of hours ago, and here they were, about to fight over absolutely nothing.

"Natsu…" Gray sighed. Across from him, Natsu was already in a fighting stance.

"What? You chickening out, popsicle?" Natsu taunted the other mage. Gray knew the comment should bother him, but that _guilt_ was spreading to all parts of his body.

"Shut up, flame brain," Gray wiped a hand over his face.

Natsu's laugh rang through the air, but it sounded different. Gray couldn't figure out why.

"Fight m-"

"What's wrong?" Gray interrupted Natsu, asking the question that had been bothering him for hours.

Natsu sputtered, "W-what the hell are you talking about?" Gray sighed again.

"I saw you earlier." Natsu froze. "At your house, with Lucy. I saw - I saw you crying." Gray's voice got quieter the more he spoke, eyes drifting to the dirt below them.

Suddenly, Gray felt incredibly warm.

"You what?!" Gray's head shot up at Natsu's tone.

"I saw you cryi-"

"Don't!" Natsu held up a hand, coated in wild flames. Gray shut his mouth.

Natsu's flames were getting hotter, causing Gray to coat a thin layer of ice over his body.

After a couple moments of silence, Natsu's voice came out, rough and harsh. "Who the **fuck** do you think you are?"

"Natsu -"

"No! What gave you the right to do something like that?" Natsu's whole body was shaking, and Gray had an urge to hug his best friend.

"It wasn't on purpose," Gray put his hands up in defense, slowing walking to Natsu, not that the fire mage could _see_ Gray surrendering.

"I can hear you coming closer, so stop!" Gray immediately halted.

"Let me explain," Trying to reason with Natsu was like walking a pet fish, _impossible._ Gray knew once Natsu's heart and mind were set on an emotion, there was no way of changing it.

However, this was different. Gray betrayed his best friend's trust. There was no going back from that.

"Why the fuck should I let you?" Natsu was visibly fuming, one roar away from wiping out the forest around them.

Gray's pride didn't want to, but his heart yearned for Natsu's forgiveness. So, he did the one thing he knew would throw off the fiery male.

"_Please, Natsu_," And like Gray had assumed, Natsu's flames extinguished.

_Victory_.

Taking a deep breath, Natsu closed his eyes, then reopened them. "Fine." Gray's eyes bulged. _That was almost too easy_.

"R-Right. Well, when I woke up this morning, I was, ya know," He gestured to his body. Natsu snorted.

"If you're moving your hands or something, I literally can't see you."

"Oh, yeah." Gray flushed. "Before calling Lucy, I decided to pull some pranks, because, you know, who wouldn't want to right? Can't get caught if you can't be seen?" Natsu continued to glare at the floating shorts and shirt before him. "Anyway, I couldn't find you at the guild, so I figured you were home, and your bedroom window was cracked open, and I just - I couldn't help it." Natsu's eyes widened with fear.

"W-What did you hear?" His voice was a whisper, throwing Gray off a bit.

"U-Um, well, something about someone not liking guys, uh, that you were heartbroken? And, u-uh, that you weren't hungry." Gray was beginning to worry. _Why does he look so scared_?

"O-Oh, okay." After a couple of moments of awkward silence, Gray spoke up again.

"Do you, uh, want to talk about it?"

"No!" Natsu yelled out, making Gray jump. "Sorry, um, no, I'm fine."

"You don't seem fine?" Gray said, raising an eyebrow. Natsu stayed silent. Gray sighed. "Look, man, I know I'm not your favorite person, but I -"

"I'm gay." Gray choked on his breath, while Natsu chuckled softly.

"Huh?" _Wow, what a response idiot. _

"Need me to repeat it, old man?" Trying to ease the tension, Natsu threw an insult out there.

"No, no. Just, uh," Gray wasn't sure how to respond. Natsu frowned.

"Is that a problem?"

"No! Not at all!" Gray panicked. "I just wasn't expecting it."

"Ah," Silence filled the air around them. Natsu stared at the ground, and Gray felt he should be comforting the man before him.

"Um, I'm, uh," Gray kept stuttering. Natsu looked up with sad, yet hopeful eyes. _Hopeful?_ "I'm bi."

Eyes brightening slightly, Natsu's posture changed. His spine straightened out as he stared down Gray.

"Oh, that's um,"

"Yeah."

Things were different.

Not in a bad way, but Gray didn't know how to describe it.

He no longer felt the urge to punch Natsu in the face. He found himself laughing at Natsu's stupidity. He caught himself staring at Natsu longer than he probably should, more times that he'd care to admit.

_Natsu_. That was the difference. _Natsu_. Gray was seeing his friend in a different light now. Although still annoying, Natsu was kind of, well, great.

It took a full week before the effects of the drink had worn off Gray. He was sitting at the bar in the guild, shamelessly staring at Natsu as he told a story. He didn't bother hiding his new admiration for the man, considering no one could see him.

That was until Mirajane spoke up from behind the bar.

"Gray?" Her sweet voice interrupted Natsu's storytelling, causing those at the bar to look in Gray's direction. Thinking he was still in the clear, Gray continued to stare at Natsu.

"Yeah, Mira?"

"Why are you staring at Natsu like that?" The guild was silent now. Everyone was now staring at Gray.

"What're you talking about?" He turned to Mira, giving his attention to her now. However, before she could respond, Gray was bombarded.

"Gray! You're back!" Wendy hugged Gray's waist tightly, wailing aloud.

"Wh-what?" He looked down at the girl, and saw his naked torso, _where did my shirt go_, his legs under his shorts and his arm that was hovering over Wendy's body. _I'm back…_

The guild erupted. Cheers and laughter were surrounding him. Guildmates patted him on the shoulder and commented on his lack of clothing.

But then Mira's voice spoke above all. "But why were you staring at Natsu?" Eyes wide, Gray looked over at Natsu, only to find his friend avoiding his gaze, cheeks flushing.

"He was, uh, he was telling a story. I was l-listening." Gray stuttered out, praying no one noticed.

"Yeah, but you had this like, look in your ey-"

"Mira." Lucy cut off the sweet woman.

Natsu finally looked up at Gray, causing the ice-make wizard to gasp lightly.

There was a light halo around Natsu's head from the light flooding through the windows. The pink on Natsu's cheeks brightened from Gray's intense stare. There was a gleam in Natsu's emerald eyes that Gray felt the need to drown in. Natsu's hair looked _so soft_.

"Gray?" Natsu's voice came out as a whisper, worry laced with something else Gray couldn't place.

"I - uh," No words were forming in Gray's mind.

"Wanna go, ice princess?" Natsu's tone sounded threatening, but Gray heard that same _something else_.

"Yeah, Flame Brain." Gray's mind was completely blank. The answer he gave was a natural reaction to Natsu's remark.

"I'm all fired up." Natsu shot Gray a smirk. Gray couldn't breathe.

Before Gray knew it, he was chasing Natsu through the streets of Magnolia. Natsu was the lead, and Gray couldn't help but follow.

Eventually, they ended up in front of Natsu's door, panting, smiles on their faces.

Once their breathing slowed, both males stood straight, staring at each other with light blushes on their faces.

"So-"

"Do-"

They chuckled.

"You first." Natsu gestured to Gray.

"Um, okay." Gray clenched his fists at his sides, trying to get his nerves in check. "I-I'm not entirely sure when, or why, or how, but, the past week has been pretty good, and I'm not sure if you noticed, but we've been getting along better, and I'm seeing sides of you I didn't know existed, and I like them, not that I don't like the rest of you, because I do, wait!"

Gray's breathing was erratic, thoughts jumbled. "Um, I mean, I'm just happy, we're becoming closer friends rather than strict rivals, and I know Alvarez had a huge impact on both of our lives, but I like to think it was in a good way, because now you know your history, we don't have to worry about Zeref anymore, and you've gotten so much stronger and it paid off, I can tell, I mean we can all tell."

_When did his palms get so sweaty?_ "And, um, I don't know where I'm going with this because I'm just speaking out of my ass here, and it'd be great if you like, punched me or something to shut me up before I say something REALLY stupid. So, yeah, just, hit me or whatever." Gray took in a deep breath and squeezed his eyes shut, bracing for impact.

After a full 30 seconds of complete silence and no punching, Gray peeked an eye open to check on his friend.

Natsu's mouth was slightly ajar as he stood frozen, staring at Gray.

Another minute and a half passed without any movement from either of them. Gray was getting nervous.

_I knew I was going to say too much. Now he's going to hate me. I freaked him out. _

"I'm sorry," Gray's voice broke, but he refused to acknowledge it. "I'll just go." Gray turned to leave when a _hot_ hand grasped his wrist tightly.

"Don't go," Natsu's voice was quiet. So quiet, if the silence hadn't been so intense, Gray would've missed it. Turning around, Gray held Natsu's gaze. "Please?" Gray almost choked.

"O-Okay." Natsu let go. Walking up to his door, Natsu pushed it open and went inside. Gray stared dumbly at the empty threshold.

"Popsicle!" Natsu loud voice carried through the house and outside. "You coming in or not, idiot?!"

Gray shook his head with a smile, walking through the opening, and shutting the door behind him.

It'd been a while since Gray had been in Natsu's little cottage. He scanned the living area, taking in the homeliness that practically suffocated Gray. He took his time walking through the house, and eventually found himself in front of Natsu's bedroom.

Suddenly, guilt flooded his system, as he remembered betraying his best friend by listening in on an obviously private moment. Natsu may have forgiven him, but that doesn't mean Gray has to forgive himself.

Before his emotions could flood his system, Natsu's voice cut through, calling Gray into his room.

Natsu was sitting crossed legged by the edge of his bed. When Gray came into view, Natsu patted the spot beside him. Gray raised an eyebrow but didn't question it, taking a seat on the firm bed.

"My turn," Besides inviting Gray into his house, this was the first time Natsu spoke. "Do you have any idea who I was talking about?" Natsu focused on his hands in his lap.

"What do you mean?" Gray tried getting Natsu to look at him, but the pinket avoided his gaze at all costs.

"When you saw me, - heard me, - ya know," Natsu wasn't making too much sense.

"Natsu, what-"

"When you were eavesdropping!" Natsu yelled in frustration, eyes meeting Gray's. The ice-make wizard's expression dropped, shame flooding through him. Natsu's eyes widened. "No, wait, I didn't mean it like that. I forgive you. You know that right?" Gray looked down and shrugged his shoulders. Natsu groaned. "Look, anyway, do you remember when you saw me crying?"

Not trusting his voice, Gray nods.

"And you remember what I said?" Gray's eyebrows scrunched before looking up at his friend. "I'd said that I thought someone wasn't into guys."

Gray remembered. Eyes softening, he nodded again.

"Do you know who I was talking about?" At that moment, Gray realized he never even thought about it. He'd heard so much already, he was overwhelmed and ran away, not thinking about the words Natsu spoke.

"I'd actually never thought about," Gray said, shrugging his shoulders. Natsu let out a breathy laugh, looking at his lap again.

"Figures," Natsu said quietly. Gray was confused again. "Do you want to know?"

_Did I?_ Gray felt a surge of jealousy in his heart. _Why would I be jeal- oh fuck it, I like him. Might as well accept it._

"Um, I-I don't think so?" Gray wasn't convincing.

"You sure?" Natsu looked surprised at Gray's answer.

"I, um, I don't know." Gray couldn't look his friend in the eye.

Natsu hummed. The two sat next to each other, about an inch apart, staring off into nothing. The silence was deafening and Gray was becoming incredibly nervous. _Why? No clue._

"It was you," Natsu whispered. Gray's eyes bulged.

"Wh-what?"

"I don't want things to be weird between us. Like you said, it's been better and I like it.

But, I couldn't hold it in anymore. Especially since you had already heard me talking about it. I just, I had to tell you. We could forget about it though, I don't want things to ch-"

"You like me?" Gray interrupted Natsu's rambling, causing the pinket to look up, face red.

"Ye-yeah." The two stared at each other for a long moment. Neither daring to move,

speak, _breathe_, in fear of the other leaving.

Finally, Gray broke the tension, asking the one thing that's been in the back of his mind for

Mavis knows how long.

"Can I kiss y-" He didn't even get a chance to finish before Natsu attacked Gray, fitting his lips between Gray's.

At first, Gray stilled. Mind going blank, Gray didn't know what to do. It wasn't until he felt the pressure on his lips increase that he realized Natsu was _kissing him_. Gray hesitantly brought his hands to Natsu's shoulders, kissing back lightly. Natsu's arms wrapped around Gray's waist, pulling the man closer.

Gray's confidence grew the more he kissed Natsu. Gray wound his fingers through Natsu's hair, settling there before tugging slightly. Natsu moaned into Gray's mouth, causing an unlikely shiver to rake through Gray's body. Natsu tightened his arms, and using his strength, pulled Gray into his lap. Gray let out a gasp, and Natsu took the glorious opportunity to flick his tongue inside Gray's warm mouth.

Unlike his original kiss, Natsu's tongue was delicate, softly roaming Gray's cavern, before nudging the other's tongue to dance with his. Gray sighed through his nose in pleasure. Natsu unwrapped his hands from behind Gray's back, roaming to the front, running his open palms along Gray's open torso. This time, it was Gray's turn to moan. Natsu smirked against Gray's mouth.

Taking the challenge, Gray pulled harder on pink locks. Natsu groaned roughly, and Gray returned the smirk. Gray decided it was time to breathe, reluctantly pulling his mouth from Natsu's.

Natsu chased his lips, and Gray chuckled softly. Leaning his forehead against the other, Gray sighed happily. The two opened their eyes, staring at one another. Both lips were swollen and wet from the activity.

When their breathing evened out, Gray spoke up. "You like me."

Natsu snorted, tilting his head slightly, rubbing his nose against Gray's, who blushed at the affection.

"Yeah, dumbass." Natsu's smile was radiant, causing Gray's insides to twist.

Removing his fingers from Natsu's hair, Gray ran his hands down the back of Natsu's neck, then his shoulders, to the front of his chest. Natsu's breathing intensified.

"I, uh," Gray was struggling. Natsu obviously knew of his own feelings for a while, whereas these were new for Gray. Natsu shook his head against Gray's.

"It's okay Gray," It was like Natsu was reading his mind. Gray pulled back slightly to look at Natsu better.

"What do you mean?"

Natsu sighed. "We've never been good at expressing our emotions. And as hard as it was for me to admit how I felt about you, I know it's probably just as hard for you, if not harder." Eyes searching Gray's face, Natsu's fingers rubbed lazy circles on Gray's naked hips. Gray shivered, nodding. Natsu gave a toothless smile. "All I ask is, can you give me chance? Maybe I can take you on a date?"

The hope in Natsu's eyes shimmered, and Gray had to keep himself from falling in its pools. Gray returned Natsu's sweet smile.

"I'd like that, Flame Brain."


End file.
